M&A Deal Summary

LinkedIn Acquires Lynda

On April 9, 2015, LinkedIn acquired education company Lynda from Spectrum Equity and TPG for 1.5B USD

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is LinkedIn’s 1st transaction in the Education sector.
  • This is LinkedIn’s largest (disclosed) transaction.
  • This is LinkedIn’s 11th transaction in the United States.
  • This is LinkedIn’s 10th transaction in California.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2015-04-09
Target Lynda
Sector Education
Buyer(s) LinkedIn
Sellers(s) Spectrum Equity
TPG
Deal Type Add-on Acquisition
Deal Value 1.5B USD

Target

Lynda

Carpinteria, California, United States
website
Lynda is an online learning company that helps anyone learn software, technology, creative and business skills to achieve their personal and professional goals. Through individual, corporate, academic and government subscriptions, more than two million people have access to the lynda.com video library of engaging, top-quality courses taught by recognized industry experts and filmed at the company’s 12-acre, state-of-the-art campus in Carpinteria, California.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

LinkedIn

Mountain View, California, United States

website

Category Company
Founded 2002
Sector Internet Software and Services
Employees9,732
Revenue 3.0B USD (2015)
DESCRIPTION

LinkedIn is an online professional social network that offers tools to access business connections. LinkedIn was formed in 2002 and is based in Mountain View, California.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 12 of 20
Sector (Education) 1 of 1
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 12 of 20
State (California) 10 of 16
Country (United States) 11 of 18
Year (2015) 3 of 4
Size (of disclosed) 1 of 7
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2015-04-02 Refresh.io

Mountain View, California, United States

Refresh.io produces an iOS app that provides insights about people in your networks before you meet them.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2015-08-27 Fliptop

San Francisco, California, United States

Fliptop, Inc. runs a platform that helps advertisers track email and social-marketing campaigns.

Buy -

Seller(S) 2

SELLER

Spectrum Equity

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

website

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1994
PE ASSETS 4.7B USD
Size Large
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION

Spectrum Equity Management L.P. is a private equity investor focused on service businesses. Spectrum specifically targets established businesses in the media, communications, IT, information, and business services industries. The Firm looks to commit $25 to $100 million of equity capital per transaction and focuses on opportunities throughout North America and Western Europe. Prospective transaction situations include leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, acquisition financings, and secondary purchases. Spectrum Equity Investors was formed in 1994 and has offices in Boston, Massachusetts and Menlo Park, California.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 40 of 70
Sector (Education) 1 of 1
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 26 of 43
State (California) 7 of 11
Country (United States) 36 of 63
Year (2015) 1 of 1
Size (of disclosed) 8 of 27
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2015-03-02 Definitive Healthcare

Framingham, Massachusetts, United States

Definitive Healthcare is a provider of data and intelligence on hospitals, physicians, and other healthcare providers. The company’s data provides its 2,200+ clients with the analytics and insight needed to effectively segment and research the healthcare provider market. Definitive Healthcare was founded in 2011 and is based in Framingham, Massachusetts.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2015-06-08 Jimdo

Hamburg, Germany

Jimdo is a provider of cloud-based website creation software, that enables anyone to create a customized online presence with a blog and online store. Jimdo was formed in 2007 and is based in Hamburg, Germany.

Buy -
SELLER

TPG

Fort Worth, Texas, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor

website

Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1992
PE ASSETS 137.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

TPG Capital is a global, mega-sized private investment firm that manages a family of funds focused on private equity, real estate, venture capital, public equity and debt investing. TPG invests in opportunities across a broad range of industries and geographies. TPG generally seeks to invest in established businesses that can benefit from the Firm's operational experience and connections. Industries of interest include consumer, retail, healthcare, industrials, digital media, natural resources, energy, real estate, technology, and software. TPG was formerly known as Texas Pacific Group and was originally established in 1992 by David Bonderman, James Coulter and William Price. The Firm is based in Forth Worth, Texas with additional offices in Europe, Asia, and Australia.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 141 of 245
Sector (Education) 1 of 3
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 55 of 89
State (California) 38 of 60
Country (United States) 103 of 182
Year (2015) 6 of 15
Size (of disclosed) 32 of 71
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2015-04-09 Kudu

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Kudu is one of Saudi Arabia’s major domestic Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) chains, operating over 280 restaurants across a portfolio of brands. Kudu was founded in 19688 and is based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2015-04-20 Cirque du Soleil

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Cirque du Soleil is a creative content provider of live artistic entertainment. In addition to shows, the company, which has its International Headquarters in Montréal, extends its creative talent to other spheres of activity. Cirque du Soleil was formed in 1984 and is based in Montreal, Quebec.

Buy $1.5B
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